Chapter 339: Witnesses Take the Stand One by One

Chapter 339: Witnesses Take the Stand One by One

Fang Sanshun refused to back down, "So you think I wouldn't travel this far just to collect two hundred coins, and that's why you deliberately didn't pay me back?"

Da Chuan remained silent.

"Hmph, I lent you the money because of our years of friendship; I trusted you. But look at you now, living the good life, eating well and drinking fine spirits. I'm not asking you to help your brothers out, but you can't just keep the money I lent you, can you?"

The expression on Fang Da Chuan's face was as ugly as it could get.

Lord Yu said, "Enough, we'll settle your debts later. For now, let's discuss the matter of Fang Da Chuan and Zhao Zhaodi swapping children. Witness Fang Sanshun, please step back."

"Yes, my lord."

Fang Sanshun stepped back, and Lord Yu called for the next witness to take the stand.

This time, it was the midwife who came forward, explaining that she had delivered both children.

"Both Miss Zheng and the Fang girl were delivered by you? Can the witness confirm this?"

"The humble woman is certain, anyone from Fangjia Village can vouch for it."

Lord Yu looked at Fang Da Chuan and his wife, "Do you two agree?"

Their faces turned grim, but they reluctantly nodded.

"Good, as long as you agree. Please, witness, tell us about the strange behavior of the Fang couple on the day Miss Zheng was born."

"In the dead of winter, they bathed both children. After delivering Lady Zheng, I had already bathed Miss Zheng once, yet they bathed them again. It was to make it easier to swap the children's clothes and switch them."

Fang Da Chuan and his wife vehemently protested.

"You're making things up! We didn't swap the children!"

"Bathing... bathing was because the children spit up milk, yes, because they spit up milk."

The midwife responded, "Country children aren't as precious as those from wealthy families. In the middle of winter, even if they spat up milk, they wouldn't be washed, much less if they smeared themselves with chicken droppings. How could it be such a coincidence that both babies spit up milk?"

They were left speechless by her words.

In the adjacent room, the Zheng family, through a small window, gritted their teeth and stared intently at those kneeling in the courtroom.

Today was a significant day, and Zheng Jinyu had specifically chosen a day when Lord Zheng was off duty to proceed.

Fortunately, neither of her brothers had school today, so the whole family could attend together.

Lady Zheng seemed dazed, staring blankly through the window lattice at those in the courtroom. She placed a hand on Lord Zheng's arm and asked in a trembling voice, "Is it true? What she said, is it really true? Did they really swap the children that day?"

Lord Zheng took a deep breath and said, "I was in the county that day, but I remember that the midwife was indeed this woman."

"What about you two?" Lady Zheng suddenly turned to Zheng Hongqi and Zheng Hongxu, "Were you always by my side? Did you see anything?"

Both shook their heads.

"Mama, we were only two or three years old then, we don't remember. Forget about swapping sister, I don't even remember being exiled."

"I do have some memories, feeling very tired and not wanting to walk, being forced to move. But I don't remember anything about the day sister was born."

"It would have been better if Eldest Brother was here. He was six years old then, he might remember something."

Lady Zheng looked at Zheng Jinyu with red eyes.

Zheng Jinyu replied coolly, "Didn't Mama know about the child swap from the beginning? Last time, you even sent Fang Da Chuan and his wife to the court, remember? After all this time, why are you upset again?"

Lady Zheng hesitated, opening her mouth several times before speaking, "Last time, we didn't have any evidence."

Indeed.

How laughable.

They did lack evidence, but Fang Da Chuan and his wife had already admitted it to the Zheng family before being brought to court.

At this point, she was still deceiving herself, clinging to the slightest possibility that it wasn't true, refusing to accept the truth.

After all, the truth was so painful.

"Next witness," Lord Yu dismissed the midwife and called for another witness.

Fang Da Chuan and his wife, already ashen-faced, turned even paler upon seeing the new witness. They couldn't believe it.

"Third Uncle, how could it be you?"

The elder glared at the couple and snorted, "Our Fang family has suffered for having an ungrateful son like you. We may be poor, but we have dignity. How could you swap someone else's child for your own selfish desires?"

Fang Da Chuan's lips trembled.

The elder continued, "They used your land to give birth, but when they left, they gave you fifty taels of silver. Wasn't fifty taels enough? Enough to replace your thatched hut with a large tiled house and buy two plots of land. You swapped their child, but you could have raised her properly. But what did you do?

That girl suffered so much under your care. From a young age, you sent her to wash clothes by the river, her little hands turning red and developing chilblains, yet she still had to work. If she worked too slowly, you beat her."

The elder was agitated, but despite his age, his memory was sharp, recounting a series of past misdeeds committed by the Fang family.

It was truly heartbreaking to hear.

What Grandpa Ma San mentioned were things the Zheng family hadn't heard before. The information they had gathered was merely the tip of the iceberg.

Lady Zheng covered her mouth with her handkerchief, tears streaming down her face.

Lord Zheng also occasionally lifted his sleeve to wipe away his tears.

Zheng Hongqi and Zheng Hongxu glared with red eyes at the people in the hall, held down firmly in their chairs by several officers.

They were about to lose control and rush out to hit someone.

Only Zheng Jinyu looked on with a cold expression at the crowd in the hall.

"The girl was born into wealth and fortune, yet you swapped her into a poor family. And then you treated her that way. But who would have thought that you still had the audacity to rely on this connection to enjoy yourselves in the capital? How can you be so shameless? Fang Da Chuan, where did you get the nerve to proclaim everywhere that the young Miss Zheng was raised by you?"

These witnesses had been in the capital for several days already. During their rest periods, Xie Peiyu also arranged for them to learn about what Fang Da Chuan had been up to in the capital.

His two daughters had entered prestigious households, his son attended a school in the capital, and they lived in a beautiful small courtyard, without any worries about food or drink.

Fang Da Chuan went out every day to drink tea and alcohol. Once he drank too much, he started bragging.

He claimed that he had raised the young Miss Zheng, that Lady Lu was his biological daughter.

Where did he get the nerve?

It's unjust that such despicable people could live such good lives.

Finally, there was the evidence and testimonies from relevant individuals sent by the local government office of the small southern city.

Minister Yu stared coldly at the kneeling couple, Fang Da Chuan and his wife, below the stage. They were already drenched in sweat and ashen-faced.

"Now that the evidence and witnesses are here, what do you have to say?"